What is the Hermes + NotebookLM AI agent?
The Hermes + NotebookLM AI agent is a free, open-source AI agent that works with Google's NotebookLM to turn your research into finished content automatically. It runs on your own computer inside a dashboard called Agent OS, so you don't need coding skills or paid tools.
Hermes was built by Neuse Research and opened to the public in February. It can build and run things for you. When connected to NotebookLM through an MCP bridge, Hermes can tell NotebookLM to make podcasts, videos, infographics, slide decks, and more—all from sources you drop in. The agent does the clicking and copying for you.
Main features of Hermes and NotebookLM
Here are the key features shown in this episode:
- NotebookLM makes 12 different content types from one source: podcasts, videos, slide decks, infographics, flashcards, FAQs, reports, mind maps, and more.
- Hermes is a free, open-source agent that can control NotebookLM and other tools.
- Agent OS is a local dashboard where you chat with your AI agents, use voice mode, and save chats to notes.
- Memory stores your case studies, wins, tools, and past content on your machine, so the system remembers you.
- Goals let you track progress and keep your agents working toward a specific target.
- Everything runs on free models you plug into Hermes, with no accounts to set up.
How to set up the Hermes and NotebookLM agent
Setting up the Hermes and NotebookLM agent involves a few steps. In this episode, Julian Goldie explains his exact setup is available in the AI Profit Boardroom, but here is the general process:
- Install Agent OS on your computer. It runs locally and needs no account.
- Download and set up Hermes from Neuse Research. It's free and open source.
- Connect Hermes to NotebookLM using an MCP—a bridge that lets the agent talk to NotebookLM directly.
- Add your research sources to NotebookLM (websites, PDFs, Google Docs, audio).
- Open Agent OS and start giving Hermes commands like "make me a podcast."
The episode says the full zip file, including the Hermes setup, NotebookLM connection, MCP bridge, and memory, is inside the AI Profit Boardroom for easy installation.
How to use Hermes with NotebookLM daily
Once set up, using the agent is simple. You open Agent OS and see all your NotebookLM notebooks in one panel. Pick a notebook, hit the Studio tab, and see every video, podcast, and slide deck NotebookLM made for you.
Then you tell Hermes what to create. For example, you could say, "create a short video explaining the three biggest benefits of joining the AI Profit Boardroom." Hermes runs it, pulls from your memory, and saves the result into your notes.
You can also use voice mode. Say, "hey, make me a short video about how AI automation saves a small business owner 10 hours a week," and the agent works while you sip coffee. If you want to change the dashboard look, you type "make this cleaner" and Hermes does it—no code.
Results and comparisons from the episode
In this episode, Julian shows how the Hermes + NotebookLM agent can turn one pile of research into a full stack of content. He gives the example of growing the AI Profit Boardroom: he drops in sources about AI automation, case studies, and notes, then asks Hermes to make a podcast. NotebookLM makes the podcast, Hermes pulls it back into Agent OS, and then he asks for a short video with his avatar. The whole process takes a few clicks, not a full day.
He compares this to using NotebookLM alone, which has problems: it gets messy, has no memory, causes tab hopping, and your data floats around in someone else's tool. With Agent OS, everything is one clean screen, memory is built in, and the system gets smarter each time you use it because every new creation feeds back into memory.
The episode also notes that most people use only about 10% of NotebookLM's capabilities, but the agent setup unlocks the rest.
Tips, limits, and mistakes to avoid
Julian shares some honest tips and warnings. First, the setup can feel like a wall of new words—connectors, agents, bridges, memory—but once it's done, you don't touch the hard parts. The setup is the only speed bump.
Avoid the common mistake of using NotebookLM alone, because it forgets everything and starts you at zero each time. Instead, use the memory feature so your content sounds like you, not like a robot.
Another limit: NotebookLM on its own is powerful but lonely. You need the system around it to manage notebooks and avoid tab hopping. Also, the episode warns that without memory, your content is generic AI fluff. The memory loop is what makes content unique.
Who should use the Hermes + NotebookLM agent
This setup is for business owners, solo creators, and anyone who wants to produce content without a big team. Julian says one business owner, with no team, no editor, no big agency, can drop in knowledge once and then ask for podcasts, videos, slide decks, or a week of posts—all sounding like them because the system remembers them.
It matters because the tools are free, the agent is free, and the output used to require a full team behind you. Now it's one agent and one free notebook on your laptop. The people who wire it together this year will be miles ahead of those still copying and pasting one thing at a time.
If you want the exact setup, Julian mentions the full Agent OS zip file is inside the AI Profit Boardroom, and there's a free community called AI Success Lab with 75,000 members for beginners.
